I cannot believe on Monday my baby boy will be 9 months old! I love how alert, talkative and somewhat mobile he has become. Graham is not yet crawling, but he can scoot backwards and he loves to hold onto furniture and cruise, which means we have to keep an eye on him at all times.
Here are a few things I have discovered over the last few months of motherhood.
The tantrums begin...
Graham is really a happy guy, but I'm starting to see some tantrums begin. He hates wearing his winter coat and the other day I was trying to put it on him and he threw himself backwards on the kitchen floor. I've learned to just let him lay for a minute and he calms down.
Separation anxiety sets in...
I definitely had separation anxiety when I first started back to work and taking Graham to daycare, but now the roles are reversed and sometimes the little guy does not like it if mom leaves the room or drops him off at someone's house. For the most part Graham gets over it quickly. I think having him go to daycare four days per week helps him adjust and me adjust.
Nursing is done...
I really enjoyed the eight months I nursed Graham. It allowed us a closeness that I know giving him formula in a bottle would not have provided. I was proud my body could give him the nutrition he needed, especially for the first five months of his life before he started solid foods. I also loved the fact that I could eat anything and everything (especially sweets) and not gain an ounce. Nursing also helped me lose my baby weight quickly. Within the first week home I was wearing my regular jeans with a zipper!
Sleep is not always a given...
Graham was a good sleeper for months 3-4 then all hell broke loose. It started the week Matthew went to Texas for a wedding. Graham stopped sleeping from 8 p.m. to 5:30-7 a.m. He began to wake up at 10 p.m., 1 a.m., etc. and everyone's sleep began to get less and less. I think it is really hard for baby's to rest so well until they are moving around. Now that Graham is more mobile he is transitioning into a better sleeper and I hope this pattern continues, because the last four months have been hard to function.
Taking time for myself becomes easier...
I had a really hard time taking "me time" during Graham's first seven months. Just this last month I started to feel better about getting out of the house and doing things I want to do. I think there is always going to be some mom guilt, but I know that it is better for both Graham and I to do things together and apart.
Overall I really love Graham and being his mom. I think the more vocal he becomes the more fun we will have. He is just a baby babble chatterbox now and can say a few words: "hi", "bye", "Tootsie", "Da Da", "dog" and "Ba Ba". I am excited to see what he is saying and doing at 10 months!
Professional photos by Nellie Smith Photography of Lincoln, Neb.
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